


The Pacific Nail Lounge

by AdamantSteve



Category: The Avengers (2012)
Genre: M/M, Manicures & Pedicures, and so does clint, nail salon, phil gets a manicure
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-06-02
Updated: 2013-06-02
Packaged: 2017-12-13 17:29:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,168
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/826906
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AdamantSteve/pseuds/AdamantSteve
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>On their twelfth date, Clint meets Phil in the mall. And they get manicures.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Pacific Nail Lounge

**Author's Note:**

> This was inspired by a recent trip to the nail salon.........  
> I don't know.
> 
> This is unbetaed so apologies for any mistakes/typos/grammatical crimes.
> 
> The nail salon I go to is Vietnamese so that's what I went with here.

Clint figures Phil'll be _outside_ the Pacific Nail Lounge, like it's just a useful landmark in the mall that has a bench outside it or something. But he's not there when Clint finishes up at Foot Locker, and Phil's never usually late for a date so he calls his cell.

"I'm here, where are you?"

"I'm inside. I can see you through the window. Come in."

"Inside where?"

"The nail place like I said..."

Clint looks around and sure enough, Phil's waving at him from the back of the nail salon.

 

He walks in and immediately feels like he's going to accidentally crush something. About fifty tiny asian women ignore him as they do... things... to women at the various miniscule stations around the salon. A few of the clientele look up and ogle him a little, but Clint's not really paying much attention to them because Phil's at the back of the shop sitting in what Clint can only describe as a throne. It's a huge gold and red construction with leather padded seats and a freaking feet sized jacuzzi that Phil's feet are soaking in.

 

He's about to ask what on earth is going on when a voice from beside Phil laughs brightly and Clint realises who it is sitting next to him in a similar throne: Pepper Potts. 

"What's... happening?"

Phil laughs. "You've met Pepper, he says, and Clint shakes his head. "Yes! I'm sorry. Hi!"

He reaches out a hand to shake Pepper's but she holds up a palm to stop him. "Wet nails," she apologises with a smile. "Sorry."

 

At Clint's continued bafflement, Phil takes pity and explains. "I was getting a manicure and Ms Potts turned up and convinced me to get a pedicure too. Do you mind waiting?"

 

Before Clint can answer, someone prods him in the side and says something in... Clint thinks it's Vietnamese. He moves out of the way and stands uselessly beside Phil feeling like the most out of water fish there ever was. Phil says something to the woman in the same language and her demeanour instantly changes. She calls out and grins at Clint, and then there are two more women suddenly circling him and pulling him towards one of the tiny little chairs. 

"Phil... what is happening?"

 

"Boyfriend! You're Phil's boyfriend!" says the woman that appears on the other side of the tiny little desk-thing, pulling Clint's hands towards her. Clint tries not to smile too broadly since he can feel Phil watching him but hell, he didn't know Phil was calling him his boyfriend already. The lady turns his hands over and screeches, calling over some of the other women who poke at Clint's calluses and gasp. Phil says something else to them and they laugh, and Clint starts to feel pretty henpecked. 

 

"They've been wanting to give you a manicure since I told them about your calluses," Phil explains. 

"I thought you liked my calluses!" Clint replies, even more confused when his hands are suddenly wet - he looks back to find that his hands have been placed in chintzy bowls full of warm soapy water. 

"I do," Phil promises. "Don't worry, they won't do anything too drastic." He says something to the woman currently massaging Clint's forearms and whatever it is that she says back is definitely a plea for something, but Phil insists and she huffs acquiescence. 

 

Clint frowns but has to admit that the arm-massage (which then turns into a hand massage, which, wow?) is definitely a good time. Then some terrifying razor looking thing comes out and Clint makes a panicked noise which has Phil bark something else at the woman, who rolls her eyes and puts it away. She rubs things into Clint's skin, snips away what looks like a half-pound of skin from around his fingernails and files just about everything til Clint's sure she's got to be near bone. 

 

"You want colour?" She asks, laughing, and Clint, panicked, looks to Phil and Pepper for guidance. Pepper smiles and Phil grins and shrugs. "No?" Clint answers. He lowers his voice and leans in. "I think _he_ should have some though."

 

The lady laughs and nods her head. "Purple?" She asks, nodding towards Clint's brand new, bright purple trainers. Clint laughs and agrees quietly. "On his toes." She taps her nose and agrees, but still puts a coat of shiny clear polish on Clint's nails and tells him not to touch anything for ten minutes.

 

Clint's allowed to stand up and go wait by Phil while the first woman does all sorts of things to Phil's feet he's surprised he'd let anyone do. "This place on the level, then?" He asks, blowing on his nails because he's seen Natasha do that. His hands look too perfect, not a hangnail in sight. It's weird.

"Remember Natasha's razor-nails?" Phil asks. Clint remembers the razor nails. They were terrifying. 

 

"Yen over there did those." He nods towards maybe the most petite woman in the room who's currently painting someone's nails with bright white tips. She looks up and smiles coyly.

"Are you serious?"  

"Yep," Phil nods, and the woman making parmesan shavings out of the bottom of his feet says something which Phil translates. 

"Kim says you're bigger than she imagined you'd be." 

Clint feels himself puff up a little because apparently he's six years old. She says something else and Pepper laughs and then _she_ talks in Vietnamese too. 

"Does everyone speak Vietnamese now?" Clint asks while Pepper and Kim chat away (about _him_ , he's pretty sure) Phil explains that he likes to practice his languages as and when he can, and he's surprised Clint didn't know he got manicures - how did he think he kept his hands so neat? 

"I figured since you're at a _desk_ all the time..." Clint deadpans, and Phil snorts as he rolls his eyes. "Brat," he says fondly.

 

Clint shows him his new trainers and they chat about this and that, Pepper joining in and just generally having a pleasant conversation, and Clint almost feels at home by the time Phil realises that his toenails have been painted a bright shade of grape purple. "What?!" He cries, and the entire salon erupts in laughter. One of the women even snaps a photo on her phone of Phil's toes in their little pink toe-divider things. 

 

-

 

"This wasn't where I was expecting our twelfth date to go," Clint admits later when they're eating sushi with their perfectly manicured hands. Phil smiles and licks soy sauce from his finger. "Twelfth? You're counting?"

Clint shrugs, like he hasn't got entire spreadsheets of stats in his head when it comes to him and Phil. 

"Still good though, right?" Phil asks, and Clint can't help but be a tiny bit pleased at the small look of panic that crosses Phil's face when he says it, like Clint's having second thoughts. Like he _could_  be having second thoughts. 

"Always," Clint replies. "I always have a good time when I'm with you."

 


End file.
